December 18, 2010 - Berlin - The cost of smoking is to increase in Germany from next year, after the upper house of parliament agreed Friday to raise tobacco taxes. The incremental increases will begin in May 2011 and push the average cost of leading brands' 19-cigarette packs over 5 euros (6.6 dollars) by the year 2015.

The tax increase, between 0.04 to 0.08 cents annually per pack over the next 5 years, is aimed at compensating financial losses generated by tax relief measures for industries with high energy consumption.

The greatest increases in tobacco tax are to hit loose tobacco, which will increase annually by 0.12 to 0.14 cents for a 40-gramme pack. Cigarillos, cigars and pipe tobacco will also be hit by the increase.

December 17, 2010 - The King County Board of Health passed a controversial proposal Thursday, December 16th that bans the public use of electronic cigarettes, despite protests that the battery-powered, nicotine-delivery sticks emit no second-hand smoke and are often used for harm reduction.

Harm reduction - The original intent of harm reduction tobacco products was for use specifically by the pool of inveterate (hard-nosed, long established, deep-rooted) cigarette smokers (approximately 30 percent of smokers) that refuse to consider trying to quit smoking tobacco. For example, supporters of harm reduction such as Brad Rodu, DDS and William T. Godshall, MPH authored a paper in the December 2006 issue of the Harm Reduction Journal entitled, "Tobacco Harm Reduction: An Alternate Cessation Strategy for Inveterate Smokers," and Dr. Coral Gartner and colleagues paper in the June 16, 2007 issue of The Lancet concluded that SNUS could produce a net health benefit in inveterate smokers.

But it would be impossible to limit distribution of harm reduction tobacco products to only inveterate tobacco smokers. As pointed out by John Britton, MD, Chair of the Royal Royal College of Physicians, Tobacco Advisory Group, a proponent of the use of harm reduction therapy, "It's tobacco companies job to sell as much tobacco as possible, so they will be targeting non-smokers rather than current ones, that's the worry."

To disguise the taste of the nicotine emitted the e-cigarette device delivers the inhaled solutions in various flavors. From Ruyan, an e-cigarettes manufacturer flavors include: regular tobacco, marlboro, mint, almond, chocolate, cherry, regular, menthol, apple and strawberry. They have surveyed a number of electronic cigarette smokers and the overwhelming favorites are menthol and, believe it or not, strawberry. More: Philip Morris - Ruyan Group - e-cigarettes..

The use of these electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) will result in our children being nicotine addicts never able to reach their full potential. Surely we want the very best for our children and would do everything in our power to stop this from happening.

The 30th Surgeon General’s report just just published, - describes specific pathways by which tobacco smoke damages the human body and leads to disease and death. The report finds that cellular damage and tissue inflammation from tobacco smoke are immediate, and that repeated exposure weakens the body’s ability to heal the damage. What do think is the main culprit is here - Nicotine.

Take a look of this figure that points out the negative, side-effects of nicotine. (Nicotine)

Click to enlarge..

The measure is not a complete ban on e-cigarettes. Rather, it prohibits e-cigarette smoking in the same places where real smoking is forbidden by the state, such as restaurants, bars and workplaces.

But the state's tobacco smoking ban, adopted in 2006, was based on the fact that second-hand smoke causes cancer and other diseases. The rationale behind King County's e-cig ban was a fear of eroding "social norms." Health officials reasoned that the fake smokes - which emit a less-smelly, combustion-free vapor - are so similar to real smokes that they may cause people to think it's OK to smoke in public. And that may lead to more nicotine addiction and second-hand smoke, officials said.

The regulation also prohibits the sale of e-cigarettes, often marketed in bright colors and fun flavors, from minors. It also bans free giveaways and heavily discounted sales of the products.

The Board easily passed those regulations, saying young people needed to be protected from the products, while the federal government figures out what to do with e-cigarettes. Earlier this month, the Food and Drug Administration lost a court fight to ban or regulate e-cigarettes as unapproved drug delivery devices. (Federal Court of Appeals - e-cigarettes - rules against the FDA.. )

Leduc City flag..December 17, 2010 - The City of Leduc has passed a bylaw that bans people from smoking in their own vehicles when children are present. The bylaw was passed Monday night, December 13th by city council. The bylaw "Smoke-free Vehicles for Minors Bylaw" states that no person shall smoke in a private vehicle when another person who is under the age of 18 is present in the vehicle. This would apply even if a window, sunroof or car-top is open. This would also apply whether the vehicle is parked or moving.

If caught, violators in Leduc will get a $100 fine for the first offence and $200 for a second offence. The bylaw takes effect on July 2, 2011. The law applies even when a window or sunroof is open for ventilation. If caught, violators face a fine of $100 for a first offence and $200 for a second offence.

During the next seven months, the city will embark upon a public education campaign to inform residents about the bylaw.

December 17, 2010 - Altria Group Inc. has adopted a new senior officer structure that it said "will enhance the company's responsiveness to evolving regulatory and marketplace opportunities and continue to develop future leadership capability for the company."

Michael E. Szymanczyk will remain chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Altria. Reporting to Szymanczyk will be four business areas, each led by a single executive officer:

* Business Operations - Effective Jan. 1, 2011, David R. Beran will become vice chairman of Altria, responsible for Business Operations.

December 17, 2010 - Member of parliament of Ukraine from the Regions Party faction Andriy Pinchuk has proposed that the sale of alcoholic beverages and tobacco in stationary and mobile small architectural constructions, in particular, kiosks, stalls, and slot machines, be banned.

This draft law was registered in the parliament on Dec. 13. According to an explanatory note to the document, the draft law is mainly aimed at ensuring the proper level of health of citizens, and limiting the consumption of alcohol and tobacco.

A new report shows the air quality at bars and restaurants that had been found to have unhealthy air has improved 92 percent since Wisconsin enacted a smoking ban statewide more than five months ago, according to state officials. The Department of Health Services joined the University of Wisconsin Carbone Cancer Center in looking at the air quality of 200 bars and restaurants before the smoking ban and after. Before the ban, 21 percent of bars had air quality that was considered hazardous.

The study also saw dangerous small-particle levels from cigarette smoke dropped from 160 micrograms on average to 13 micrograms. Anything at or above 35 micrograms is considered unhealthy air.Public health agencies collected the air samples using air quality testing equipment. Most of the testing was done on weekends when the businesses were busier and more employees and customers could potentially be exposed to secondhand smoke.

December 16, 2010 - A Massachusetts jury on December 14, 2010 ordered cigarette manufacturer Lorillard Inc. to pay $71 million in damages to a dead smoker's family for allegedly seducing the Boston woman decades ago into smoking Newport cigarettes.The Suffolk Superior Court jury awarded compensatory damages of $50 million to the estate of Marie Evans and $21 million to her son, William Evans. A hearing on punitive damages in the lawsuit has been scheduled for Thursday. The total amount of damages awarded could rise significantly at that hearing. (Massachusetts - Lorillard loses lawsuit - did they pass out cigarettes to kids??)

Punitive Damages..A Suffolk Superior Court jury today, Thursday, December 16th decided that the Lorillard Inc. should be sanctioned for seducing a Roxbury woman into a lifelong – and fatal -- addiction to Newport cigarettes and ordered them to pay the estate of Marie Evans an additional $81 million in punitive damages.Earlier today, the main lawyer for Lorillard asked the jurors to no longer hold the company accountable for the past. “The focus is solely on the present and the future,” Walter Cofer, a Kansas City-based attorney representing tobacco company Lorillard Inc., told jurors today. He said the company had rectified the problems that were alleged during the recent trial: The company no longer passes out samples of Newport cigarettes, it no longer advertises cigarettes on radio or television, and the company agrees that cigarettes cause cancer and other diseases. “You don’t get punished today for moving in the right direction,” Cofer said.

But attorney Michael Weisman, representing Evans’s estate and her only son, said jurors should punish Lorillard for the acts of the past with a financial penalty to make sure such acts never occur again.

Also earlier, both sides introduced financial experts who testified about the financial status of Lorillard Inc., which the jury used in deciding punitive damages.

Robert Johnson, a forensic scientist from California, said that Lorillard is in “solid” shape and that its revenue from sales grew to $5.2 billion last year, up from $4.2 billion the year before. He said the company has $1 billion in cash at hand.

But Robert H. Temkin, a Massachusetts-based certified public accountant testifying for Lorillard, said the company is most appropriately judged by its operating values of about $844 million in yearly income, once liabilities are accounted for.

The case could have implications in Washington, D.C., where federal officials are considering a ban on menthol cigarettes.

December 16, 2010 - Raising cigarette taxes has the unwanted effect of increasing alcohol consumption, including binge and heavy drinking. This relationship is an example of what economists call a cross-price or substitution effect. And it’s something policy makers need to be cognizant of, Deborah L. McLellan said at the annual meeting of the American Public Health Association (November 6-10, 2010, in Denver, CO.)

Dr. McLellan analyzed 6 years of cross-sectional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s annual Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System surveys carried out in 2001-2006. Interviews were conducted with 1,323,758 adults living in nearly every state in the country.

December 16, 2010 - South Korea's biggest tobacco company, KT&G Corporation, said on Wednesday, December 15th it has signed a 520 billion Korean won (456.5 million US dollars) deal with Alokozay International Ltd to sell its cigarettes in the Middle East and Russia.

Alokozay International Ltd's Web site describes the Alokozay group as a major organization in the tea and cigarette industries. The site says the group comprises three main companies in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

According to KT&G, ESSE is the leading international brand from the point of view of health-oriented and premium cigarettes category, as the company applied a great effort to create a product with a very low lever of tar and nicotine, highly effective filter technology and the lowest amount of harmful additives across the industry. (KT&G: a Look on ESSE Cigarettes Maker, MyDiscountCigarette.com, 5/10/2010)

December 16, 2010 - New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s administration is suing a tobacco company in Washington state. He’s accusing King Mountain Tobacco Company, which lies on the Yakama Indian Reservation, of illegally selling and distributing untaxed cigarettes in New York. In filing the suit, Bloomberg's got a fight over Native American sovereignty on his hands.

According to the suit announced yesterday, December 14th by Bloomberg (see complaint), King Mountain sold thousands of cartons of cigarettes over a nine-month period to smoke shops on the Poopsatuck Indian Reservation in New York.

A recently passed federal law, called the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking Act, requires King Mountain to ensure that taxes are paid before shipping tobacco to New York, the suit contends. Yet the Yakama company not only failed to do so, but it refused to stop supplying the bootleg cigs after being told by Bloomberg's law office that it was breaking the law, the suit charges.

The civil action, which also accuses King Mountain and two co-owners of racketeering, seeks unspecified financial damages and an injunction to stop King Mountain from sending more cigarettes to Bloomberg territory. The mayor said yesterday that the case is "extending the fight" against tobacco tax evaders to out-of-state companies.

But King Mountain is arguing that Native American sovereignty gives the company a pass on state taxes for wholesale cigarettes. "The state has no jurisdiction," Kamiakin Wheeler, King Mountain CEO and son of co-owner Delbert Wheeler argues to the Yakima Herald-Republic.

December 14, 2010 - the corporate slogan: British American Tobacco (BAT) the world's most international tobacco group, with quality brands sold in more than 180 markets and a responsible approach to doing business from crop to consumer.

Philip Morris International Inc. (PMI) corporate slogan: is the leading international tobacco company, with seven of the world’s top 15 brands, including Marlboro, the number one cigarette brand worldwide. PMI's products are sold in approximately 160 countries.

BAT is to reduce the number of regions in its management structure from five to four with effect from 1 January 2011.

The company said it will form a new region - Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa or EEMEA, which will include all the previous Africa and Middle East (AME business units) in addition to Russia, Ukraine, Moldova, Belarus, Caucasus and Central Asia. Andrew Gray, currently regional director of AME, will be the regional director for the new region.

Meanwhile, the company's Asia-Pacific and Americas regions will remain unchanged. The Western Europe (WE region) will include the South Eastern Europe (SEE area), consisting of Romania, Bulgaria, Serbia, Montenegro, Albania and Kosovo, Jack Bowles, currently regional director of WE, will continue in that position.

Further, BAT said that Peter Taylor, group operations director, has decided to retire at the end of May 2011. He will be succeeded by Des Naughton, currently regional director of Eastern Europe. Des will become group operations director designate on 1 January 2011 and work closely with Peter and the global operations as well as research & development teams.

So what might the future hold for Newport non-menthol? UBS tobacco analyst Nik Modi summarized, "The true test will be how Newport Non-Menthol sells once the introductory pricing ends. Retailers don't seem to think it will, but it's still very early."

December 15, 2010 - On Thursday, December 16, 2010, President Obama will host the second White House Tribal Nations Conference. As part of President Obama’s ongoing outreach to the American people, this conference will provide leaders from the 565 federally recognized tribes the opportunity to interact directly with the President and representatives from the highest levels of his Administration. (President Obama Announces 2010 White House Tribal Nations Conference, The White House, 11/15/2010)

Robert Porter, president of the Seneca Nation tribe of Native Americans in western New York state, will attend and has a message for President Obama. Mr. Porter: “I’d like to see the president not be so timid in his efforts to support and protect Indian country.”

Many Native American reservations historically have suffered mightily from high unemployment and related problems. By contrast, the Seneca Nation is a thriving economy, operating casinos and tobacco businesses, Porter says. Instead of government handouts, he says the Seneca people would benefit from tax relief — a message he will carry to this week’s meeting. “The core of our economy and mentality is one of self-sufficiency. We’re not looking for extensive appropriations programs. We’re looking for tax relief,” Porter told Reuters.

While Porter is at the White House, he hopes to ask for the president's support in the Senecas' fight with New York state over cigarette taxes.

One concession that can not be made: when non-Indians buy tobacco products including cigarettes from Indian outlets they must pay the appropriate taxes. Tobacco use remains the single most preventable cause of death in the United States. Cigarette smoking accounts for nearly one-third of all cancer deaths in this country each year.One of the most effective ways to get people to quit using tobacco is to increase the price.References: Seneca Nation has message for Obama on taxes, Reuters, 12/14/2010; Seneca Nation President Issues Call to Action Native American Leaders Meet in Washington to Advance Plan for Indian Country - hard copy.

December 15, 2010 - The Thailand Tobacco Monopoly (TTM) has received cabinet approval to use its own funds to construct a 16.2-billion-baht factory at an industrial estate in Ayutthaya province. [1 USD = 30.0610 baht] The board of the state enterprise approved the purchase of land in the industrial estate in August last year. TTM so far has spent 679.11 million baht out of an approved budget of 877 million for design consulting fees. Deputy government spokesman Vachara Kannikar said the cabinet also approved a Finance Ministry proposal to cut TTM's contribution to the national treasury in fiscal 2012. At present TTM contributes 88% of its net income to the treasury.

The Thailand Tobacco Monopoly (TTM) dominates the tobacco market in Thailand. TTM is a state-owned enterprise and is the only domestic tobacco producer in Thailand. In 2008, TTM held 67% of the total cigarette market. Philip Morris International ranked second with a market share of 27 percent, followed by British American Tobacco (3 percent), and Japan Tobacco (0.5 percent.) In Thailand, more than 38 billion cigarettes were sold in 2008. (International Resource Center: Thailand: Overview

The Asean Free Trade Area (Afta) required members to cut tariffs on tobacco products to zero in January. TTM still has an 80% share of the local cigarette market.

The government first began talking about moving TTM out of Bangkok in the mid-1990s. TTM has been seeking a location for a new factory since 2007 to replace its existing site in a park-like setting off Rama IV Road, one of the most highly coveted pieces of real estate left in the centre of the capital.

December 15, 2010 - All smokers awaiting non-life threatening elective surgery - which includes hip and knee operations - must take the 12 week smoking cessation course offered by the NHS Stop Smoking Service. It is one of a range of measures being taken by managers at the primary care trust (PCT), which serves 675,000 people, to cut costs.

Dr. Steven Bodley, Chair of Ontario's Anesthesiologists at the Ontario Medical Association (OMA). "We know that patients who stop smoking before surgery not only reduce their risk of complications, but also speed up their recovery time. Patients that recover more quickly spend less time in hospital and can free up space, saving much needed health care dollars that can be reinvested back into patient care."

Another measure includes requiring those who are seriously overweight, with a body mass index (BMI) or 30 or more, to go on a 12-week NHS weight loss programme.

The orders, outlined in a letter to General Practitioners (GPs) from the PCT, went into force earlier this month. The letter read: "There is good evidence to show that stopping smoking prior to surgery reduces length of stay and infection rates, and improves healing time; it is also a time when people are often highly motivated to give up."All patients who smoke and are booked for planned surgery will therefore be required to complete a NHS Stop Smoking course prior to surgery." A spokesman for NHS Kent confirmed the measures were designed to curb a potential overspend of up to £10 million, or one per cent of its budget, by April 2011. She said: "They are part of a range of measure to ease the financial pressures that we are experiencing."

A fifth of patients in the health authority's area smoke while a quarter are overweight.

Under the NHS Constitution all patients should receive treatment within 18 weeks of referral, although the Coalition recently removed this as a target. However, NHS rules allow health authorities to "stop the clock" while patients go on such courses.

Dr John Allingham, medical secretary of Kent Local Medical Committee, told the GPs' magazine Pulse that doctors were strongly opposed to the orders. He said: "It's a way of extending the waiting times."

December 15, 2010 - Philip Morris Bulgaria is part of Philip Morris International (PMI). Marlboro brand will be introduced on the Bulgarian market in cigarette boxes with 10 pieces each, instead of the common 20. The information is listed in the tobacco products registry of the Finance Ministry. The brands "Red" and "Gold" will cost BGN 2.70 (1.83 USD) compared to BGN 5.20 (3.52 USD) for the 20-pack.

"Philip Morris Bulgaria" told the daily "Dnevnik" they are generally against such practice, but the sales of smaller packages have been very successful in Bulgaria thus the decision to start making them as well. With the participation of "Philip Morris" in the smaller packaging segment of the cigarette market in Bulgaria, the only companies remaining outside it are now "Imperial" and "Karelia."

"Dnevnik" cites cigarette makers' data showing small cigarette packaging is sharply increasing to reach soon 5% of the market, compared to 3% in the beginning of the year, and to just 0.3% in the fall of 2009.The Bulgarian Bulgartabac "King" brand has the largest share among boxes with 10 cigarettes. The cheapest 10-cigarette packages are offered by "King" as well - "King's Tobacco," by British-American Tobacco - "Viceroy," and by the Bulgarian "Femina" for the price of BGN 2.20 (1.49 USD).

JTI is introducing in Bulgaria the "LD" brand with 19-cigarette boxes for BGN 4 (2.70 USD). Currently, the cheapest cigarettes are the "Goldfield" brand, sold at the Lidl supermarket chain, for BGN 3.99 (2.70 USD) for 20 pieces.

At the moment, 18 EU Member have a ban on smaller cigarette packaging over the opinion they encourage cigarette use. Romania, Italy, Spain, France and others, mandate 20-cigarette packs while Belgium, Hungary, the Netherlands, Germany, and Greece, among others, allow no less than 19.

Ireland banned 10-pack cigarettes in May 2007. The Department of Health had signalled for years that 10-packs would be forbidden, largely because they are a magnet for under-age smokers. (10-pack cigarettes banned from Thursday, IrishHealth.com, 5/29/2007)

December 14, 2010 - The feds will be releasing new warning labels for cigarette packs by mid-January, after critics alleged the Tories caved to Big Tobacco. Conservative MPs at Tuesday's health committee voted to have Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq introduce new labels, including graphic photos, by Jan. 17, despite her previous refusal to commit to a deadline.

Cynthia Callard, executive director of Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada (PSCA) says the committee vote is a good step forward because the Tories have signalled the government will be announcing picture-based health warnings. “We left the room feeling very happy that progress had been made,” said Cynthia Callard.But with the government MPs (Members of Parlaiment) refusing to vote for both motions, “it also made us a little worried that what had been talked about last year was going to be watered down," she said. Callard says the government was under pressure to implement the changes.

“The department, we know, was working on this for seven years. They certainly had something ready to go. The question was whether it was approved.” Health Canada spent more than $3.6 million between 2004 and 2010 developing the labels and testing their effectiveness in focus groups. (Canada - millions lost in revamping cigarettes graphic warnings..)

Aglukkaq said last week she agrees bigger labels with more graphic pictures will be more effective. “We're not in bed with Big Tobacco,” she said. “I have been examining the labelling ... and I have not shelved that project.”

December 14, 2010 - For the first time since 1981, high school seniors reporting they had smoked marijuana in the last 30 days outnumbered those who said they smoked cigarettes. (In 2010, 21.4% of high school seniors said they had smoked pot in the month before, while 19.2% reported they were cigarette smokers.)

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)on Tuesday, December 14th issued its 2010 "Monitoring the Future" survey--a yearly look at kids' drug and tobacco use patterns and attitudes. The remarkable crossover of the lines for marijuana use and tobacco use is a victory for public-health campaigns aimed at stamping out cigarette smoking among teens. But the federal office that tracks illicit drug use said it is driven by an uptick in youth marijuana use that is broad-based and likely to continue.

Dr. Nora Volkow, director of NIDA, called the rise in daily use of marijuana particularly troubling, given that more frequent use, and by teens whose brains are still developing, has been shown to be more damaging to learning and memory than less frequent use. Daily users are also at far higher risk of developing dependency on marijuana and other drugs, she said. She said "one can only speculate at this point" about the cause of pot's reversal, which began roughly three years ago after a decade of declining use.

December 14, 2010 - A Massachusetts jury today ordered cigarette manufacturer Lorillard Inc. to pay $71 million in damages to a dead smoker's family for allegedly seducing the Boston woman decades ago into smoking Newport cigarettes.

The Suffolk Superior Court jury awarded compensatory damages of $50 million to the estate of Marie Evans and $21 million to her son, William Evans. A hearing on punitive damages in the lawsuit has been scheduled for Thursday. The total amount of damages awarded could rise significantly at that hearing.

The case was the first to claim that Lorillard had decided to target minority communities with samples of Newports, a menthol brand more popular among black communities.

Gregg Perry, a Lorillard spokesman, said the company denied the allegations. He said the company would appeal and was "confident it will prevail."

The jury found that the cigarette company was negligent in passing out samples of cigarettes to Evans and other black children when they were growing up in the Orchard Hill housing development in Boston's Roxbury section -- and in denying for years the health risks associated with cigarettes.

Central Issue.. Boston lawsuit blames woman's death on cigarette freebies, but Lorillard says it never gave to kids. Leslie Adamson said the white truck that stopped at the Boston housing project she grew up in brought adults and children running, much like a visit from the ice cream man. But instead of sweets, the truck brought free cigarette samples.

Lorillard attorney Walter Cofer acknowledged that the company gave away free cigarette samples — a common practice by tobacco companies from the 1950s through the 1980s — but said Lorillard did not give cigarettes to children at Orchard Park.

The cigarette giveaways are a central issue in a lawsuit brought against Lorillard Tobacco Co. by a man who claims his mother was introduced to smoking as a child through the free samples and became so addicted that she was unable to quit and eventually died of lung cancer. Lorillard denies that anyone from the company gave out cigarettes to children.Jurors also heard from Marie Evans herself as Weisman played excerpts from a videotaped deposition she gave to her lawyers in 2002, three weeks before she died. On the tape, Evans said the giveaways had a "large impact" on her.

In Richard Kluger book 'Ashes To Ashes" page 700 - he writes about the experience of Joe Tye's organization, Stop Teenage Addiction to Tobacco (STAT), caught Lorillard in the act of sampling youngsters with Newports from a van painted green and orange and bearing the brand's slogan, "Alive with Pleasure," in large, equally attention-getting letters on the streets of the nation's capital. Lorillard stated, "We do not give cigarettes to children," and blamed the incident on the carelessness of its hired dispensers.

The verdict was unusual in that, even as tobacco companies’ past marketing practices have been criticized by government agencies and court rulings, jurors are typically reluctant to side with smokers who bring lawsuits against the companies. Jurors typically want to hold the smoker partly responsible, legal experts have said.

December 13, 2010 - Dame (female equivalent of Sir) Judi Dench joined calls last night, December 11th for a ban on smoking in cars, citing the dangers to the health of youngsters. "Children are still being exposed to passive smoke, which is extremely harmful to developing lungs," said the actress.

Dame Judi, whose husband Michael Williams died of lung cancer in 2001, is vice president of the British Lung Foundation, which is calling for a ban. She added: "I am happy to offer my support ... I encourage anyone who wants the Government to make children's lung health a priority to sign up to the petition."

Pressure is mounting on the Government to extend the smoking ban to cars. Such a move would prevent some of the 22,000 new cases each year of asthma caused by passive smoking, the charity claims. Research published in The Lancet last month showed 40 percent of children were exposed to passive smoke each year, accounting for 165,000 deaths worldwide. (Passive smoking kills over 600,000 a year worldwide—WHO report..)

Supporting information: Every parent wants their children to lead healthy and happy lives. There's an abundance of evidence that children are more susceptible to the negative effects of second-hand smoke (ETS, environmental tobacco smoke, involuntary smoking, sidestream smoke, passive smoking).

Dame Judi is one of 12,000 people to have signed the petition calling for a ban on smoking in cars carrying children. The charity's aim is to collect 50,000 signatures. Deborah Arnott, the chief executive of Action on Smoking and Health, called on the Govenment to continue campaigns discouraging parents from smoking in front of their children. She said: "While we can't pass legislation to prohibit smoking in the home, smoking in cars can and should be prohibited by law."Simon Clark, the director of the smokers' group Forest, conceded: "It's reasonable to encourage people not to light up in a small confined space if children are present," but he dismissed calls for a ban as "unnecessarily heavy-handed". He added: "It's a small step to far more illiberal measures like banning smoking in all private vehicles or, worse, banning smoking in the home. Enough is enough."

A ban cannot happen quickly enough for Lynda Mitchell. The 53-year-old, from Bristol, has never smoked but is dying of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. "I found being exposed to passive smoke in the car the worst because there was no escape. I want parents to know that what happened to me could happen to their children if they continue to smoke near them." (Woman exposed to secondhand smoke as a child dying of COPD..)

Smoking in vehicles carrying children is illegal in parts of Australia, Canada, the United States (including California), as well as Cyprus. Mauritius is the only country to have banned smoking in cars outright.